Thank you, nekokami! I wish other admins/mods took the time and effort to explain things in detail as you did. I appreciated your post very much.

This is well and good. In fact, there was a time when I considered MR a welcome haven from the heated debates of other forums I visited. But recently, even before the conservatory, there were threads which I would consider "polarizing" and not at all related to eBooks which were allowed to fester. And it was even some mods who objected to closing some of those threads. If MR is going to adopt a "cut above the rest" theme and tone, then it would be good if admins/mods would uniformly impose that policy, instead of cherry-picking threads which would be allowed to continue on and on and on, even though it is obvious that the topics are viewed passionately by different sides and do not "bring people together".

It is not the job of the moderator to cherry pick threads or only support those we happen to like. Our job is to attempt to keep order and insure that no illegal activity goes on. So long as the participants are civil, most any thread will be tolerated within the published guidelines and rules of the this forum. Most participants are civil and everything goes fine, even though some people may not agree with what is said. Should someone cross the line and make personal attacks or break the law (tell how to break DRM specifically for example) they are subject to being banned from the site and at the very least their post may be deleted with a PM warning. We don't police conversations based on opinions honestly presented but some mods join in and express their own opinions.

With this understanding I hope you will continue to enjoy your stay here at mobile read. We will enforce the rules but hopefully folks will be civil and enjoy themselves.

It is not the job of the moderator to cherry pick threads or only support those we happen to like. Our job is to attempt to keep order and insure that no illegal activity goes on. So long as the participants are civil, most any thread will be tolerated within the published guidelines and rules of the this forum. Most participants are civil and everything goes fine, even though some people may not agree with what is said. Should someone cross the line and make personal attacks or break the law (tell how to break DRM specifically for example) they are subject to being banned from the site and at the very least their post may be deleted with a PM warning. We don't police conversations based on opinions honestly presented but some mods join in and express their own opinions.

With this understanding I hope you will continue to enjoy your stay here at mobile read. We will enforce the rules but hopefully folks will be civil and enjoy themselves.

Dale

I did not say it was the mod's/admin's job--in fact, I said just the opposite.
I think it was my mistake to interpret what nekokami said in her post as informal MR "policy". It was probably more her own ideal.

I did not say it was the mod's/admin's job--in fact, I said just the opposite.
I think it was my mistake to interpret what nekokami said in her post as informal MR "policy". It was probably more her own ideal.

To clarify, it isn't just my ideal. I feel safe in saying that it is Alex's ideal as well. Whether all the moderators feel the same way may be a different matter.

In this case, I think the two of you (Seabound and DaleDe) may be talking past one another, because I don't think DaleDe is really disagreeing with Seabound's suggestion that threads which become so heated that the participants are no longer civil should be moderated. We don't always step in as quickly as we might, but we welcome anyone drawing our attention to cases where a word or two might cool things down.

It is not the job of the moderator to cherry pick threads or only support those we happen to like. Our job is to attempt to keep order and insure that no illegal activity goes on. So long as the participants are civil, most any thread will be tolerated within the published guidelines and rules of the this forum.

I think the thread about what you could joke about is a counterexample to this claim. I was really annoyed that somebody closed that thread since people were civil to each other and the questions is really interesting.

I've read all the comments here, at least 3 and 4 times. We Moderators do not always agree, and why should we? Our personal disagreement(s) will now be discussed in private if/whenever two or more decide to discuss disagreements - whatever they may be.

Here it all is, the sum and substance as I see it: We Moderators are trying to further the view that Alex wants for MobileRead, because we respect his Dream for what he wants MobileRead to be. We are proud to be participants in that Dream.

This means that I have agreed to do my job as a Moderator. This limits me, as most who have come to know me realize, because I have a wild side that sees life as one crazy, HAPPY mess. However, I willingly choose to put my strong opinions and my zany humor aside in order to further this great community and to perpetuate Alex's Dream, and to stay away from places that leave me feeling "constricted" or "constipated."

What matters to me is this community. Here's how it will end for me: 1) When it's not fun for me anymore, then I will quit; or, 2) If Alex is not happy with my performance, then he will ask me to leave.

And I'll close with this smarmy [to me ] sentence: "Thank you for understanding."

NOTE: The above paragraph was a bit of leftover zany humor, sort of like having the dry heaves after a night of too many Long Island Teas. (Arf and Meow....if you know what I mean.)

Don

Last edited by Dr. Drib; 06-01-2009 at 09:09 PM.
Reason: "as I see it" - "....and to stay away from..."